The friend who lent David Bogema a Dianetics Book has a lot to answer for—Bogema’s happiness, for one thing. His profile is one of 200 “Meet a Scientologist” videos available on the Scientology website at www.Scientology.org[3].

“I was in college in 1993 when I saw a Dianetics book on my friend’s bookshelf,” says David Bogema. “I loved the fiction books of L. Ron Hubbard[4], so I reached up, pulled it down, and started reading.”

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About 30 pages later, Bogema realized this was the real thing.

“I was in engineering school,” he says. “I have been trained in logical thinking. These were the first straight answers I had ever found about the mind.”

About to graduate from Michigan Tech, located in a small town in Northern Michigan, Bogema decided to seek employment in a city near a Scientology Church so he could pursue his Scientology studies in earnest. Taking a job in the automotive industry, he enrolled in services at the Church of Scientology of Detroit.

“I knew I had ability I couldn’t access,” says Bogema, 39. “Scientology gave me the tools to see what it was about myself that held me back so I could really tap my potential.”

Bogema describes how this newfound ability helped in his career:

“As a sound engineer, I ensure our cars provide the best possible environment for the driver and passengers,” he says. “The job is a cross between engineering and aesthetics. The clarity of thinking I gained through Dianetics and Scientology made it easier for me to understand the engineering problems and find solutions.”

Scientology also rehabilitated his ability to communicate, which Bogema says accounts for his successful 14-year marriage with wife Peggy and the happiness and stability of their two boys, ages four and 18 months.

“I can’t imagine settling for a ‘normal’ relationship or family when you can have a great one,” he says. “Peggy and I understand each other so well we never have major disagreements.”

It was the strength of their relationship that gave the couple the edge when they were adopting their sons.

“Both boys were born in Russia. In each case, there was tremendous red tape in adopting them. Hundreds of times in the adoption proceedings we arrived at the point of saying ‘this is too hard.’ The temptation was to give up and try some other time,” he says, “and that would have been a tragic mistake.”

By working as a team they overcame all the barriers.

“Our boys are extraordinary beings and a joy to be with,” says the proud father. “They were quite small for their ages when they came to us and now they are both thriving. Our four-year-old has shot up so fast, people think he is seven, and he’s already learning to read.”

Bogema says he accomplished everything he hoped for when he first read his friend’s Dianetics book.

“Not too long ago I noticed something odd—the people I knew seemed a lot happier,” he says. “Then I realized what had changed was me—I am happier than I’ve ever been. It must be contagious.”

The popular “Meet a Scientologist” profiles on the Church of Scientology International Video Channel at Scientology.org now total 200 broadcast-quality documentary videos featuring Scientologists from diverse locations and walks of life. The personal stories are told by Scientologists who are educators, teenagers, skydivers, a golf instructor, a hip-hop dancer, IT manager, stunt pilot, mothers, fathers, dentists, photographers, actors, musicians, fashion designers, engineers, students, business owners and more.

A digital pioneer and leader in the online religious community, in April 2008 the Church of Scientology became the first major religion to launch its own official YouTube Video Channel, which has now been viewed by millions of visitors.